FBI Busts Child Prostitution Ring, Rescues 105 Children and Arrests 150 People
After a series of national raids, the FBI has rescued 105 children from a child prostitution ring.
The minors were mostly girls, and ranged in age from 13 to 17. One girl told officers that she had been a prostitute since she was 13. 150 pimps were also arrested.
“Many times the children that are taken in in these types of criminal activities are children that are dissaffected, they are from broken homes, they may be on the street themselves,” acting Executive Assistant Director Kevin Perkins said Monday at a news conference in Washington, D.C.
“They are really looking for a meal, they are looking for shelter, they are looking for someone to take care of them, and that’s really the first approach that’s made,” he said.
Many of the children are runaways from foster care, so their disappearance is never reported. Others are recruited by pimps, who promise an escape from troubled homes or from homelessness.
“A lot of these kids feel like they are in love, and therefore many of them will go back, so it’s not only important that they get help, but they need a specialized kind of help,” said Ernie Allen, president of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
The FBI operation, Operation Cross Country 6, took three days, starting on Friday, July 26th. In 76 cities, 2,500 local, state, and federal officials participated. Cities included Chicago, Atlantic City, Las Vegas, Miami, Los Angeles, Detroit, and San Francisco.
The sweeps are part of the Innocence Lost Project, an anti-child prostitution national initiative that started in 2003. Thanks to the initiative, more than 2,200 children have been rescued from child prostitution, and 1,000 adults have been convicted for endangering and exploiting children.
“Child prostitution remains a persistent threat to children across America,” said Ron Hosko, assistant director of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division, in a press release. “This operation serves as a reminder that these abhorrent crimes can happen anywhere and that the FBI remains committed to stopping this cycle of victimization and holding the criminals who profit from this exploitation accountable.”
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